FWD minivans vs AWD Subaru legacy?

[F. Plant]

Considering getting a used minivan, and never having driven one in the
winter, I'm wondering how well a fwd minivan performs, as I really prefer
the awd legacy to a fwd car platform. I have my doubts, but a few people
have told me that with the heavy front and good snows that they work well.
If this is true, it opens up the selection by quite a bit, especially since
I like the Honda Odyssey. Otherwise I'd be limited to the AWD which is
makes it a bit more difficult.

Thanks for your opinions,

F.Plant

 

[Rat]

With the heavy front and good snows they work well. Awd is better but
good snow tires and prudent driving you will be fine in the minivan.

 

[Kurt C. Hack]

Good choice on the Odyssey. Check out odyclub.com for more information
on them.

-Kurt

 

[Rob Munach]

Considering getting a used minivan, and never having driven one in the
winter, I'm wondering how well a fwd minivan performs, as I really prefer
the awd legacy to a fwd car platform. I have my doubts, but a few people
have told me that with the heavy front and good snows that they work well.
If this is true, it opens up the selection by quite a bit, especially since
I like the Honda Odyssey. Otherwise I'd be limited to the AWD which is
makes it a bit more difficult.

Thanks for your opinions,

F.Plant

With excellent snows, such as Blizzaks, the Honda will likley do
*better* than the Legacy with all season tires.

 

[Tom Reingold]

Considering getting a used minivan, and never having driven one in the
winter, I'm wondering how well a fwd minivan performs, as I really prefer
the awd legacy to a fwd car platform. I have my doubts, but a few people
have told me that with the heavy front and good snows that they work well.
If this is true, it opens up the selection by quite a bit, especially since
I like the Honda Odyssey. Otherwise I'd be limited to the AWD which is
makes it a bit more difficult.

Thanks for your opinions,

F.Plant

Those are pretty different vehicles, each with its merits and demerits.
So it's hard to compare and decide. What's your biggest criterion?

Until recently, I've been driving Saabs for many years. They are super
in snow, especially with four snow tires. After all, they are from
Sweden. My guess is that my Subaru will be better. My old snows will fit
the Subaru.

Where are you? An Odyssey might suit you fine. It sounds like you'd
rather have the room that a minivan affords. Am I right?

Tom

 

[Jakey]

I have had both. I live on a very steep narrow curvy road in the snowbelt.
It is often glazed or snowcovered in winter and has grade sections of 10 and
11%.

Results:

Ford Aerostar AWD Alway made it on all season tires
Massive carrying capacity
Dodge Grand Caravan FWD Worthless until I put studded snows on it.
Great carrying capacity, quiet, comfortable w. rear heat/AC
Subaru Forester Auto AWD Alway made it on all season tires
Limited cargo, great maneuverability, heater slow to warm
Subaru WRX 5 Sp Went everywhere on Speed rated tires
Forget the cargo, enjoy the ride; great heater

A lot depends where you live, how far you drive, and how often you expect
bad weather.

Last winter we put studded snows all around on the Forester--now it will
climb a tree!! Actually we wanted more stopping power on steep glazed
downhill rides. We also have an 04 Malibu FWD auto with traction control.
With snows on it it does fine stopping and going on our hill.

A minivan with traction control and snow tires should do fine on any road as
long as the snow isn't massively deep.

 

[F. Plant]

snip>

Where are you? An Odyssey might suit you fine. It sounds like you'd
rather have the room that a minivan affords. Am I right?

Tom

I was not as clear in my post as I could have been -guess I shouldn't be
composing things late at night! I currently have an 01 legacy wagon w
hakapallitas (sp?) in winter and need more passenger space and cargo room
than subaru's provide. We do a lot of skiing so winter handling is
important as we tend to go when the weather is poor. Mainly eastern Ont and
western Que.

Its been a while since I've had a fwd car, and some performed well and
others poor. A while back I had to disable the awd on my legacy due to a
soft tire and it gave me a reminder of how much better the awd handles in
rain and snow. I'm wondering how much of a performance hit I'd be taking
with a FWD minivan given the weight distribution is much different from a
car platform. If I were to go awd, it seems that toyota is the only good
choice, but a used awd Sienna is hard to find and pricey. A fwd Odyssey or
Sienna would be a lot easier to get and cheaper. I'd like to keep the price
down, but by the same token spend what is necessary -that's why I originally
got a legacy and not an Outback.

F,Plant

 

[John]

I have both, a 95 LS wagon and an 02 Ody LX.

The Ody is OK but damn, get rid of the OEM Bridgestone tires if it still has
them on there, they are lousy in the winter (and rain, and dry pavement,
etc.)
Never tired it with snows on the front but I did find that the traction
control to be more of a pain than anything. Since the Bridgestones were
lousy, the traction control did absolutely nothing. I found myself turning
it off and letting the tires spin for that gradual movement.

When all is said and done, I still prefer the subie over the van in the
snow. Just realize that with AWD if you give too much gas the rear end can
lose traction and will swing out just like a RWD vehicle. BUT unlike RWD
you still get the forward motion when you let up on the throttle.

HTH

 

[Ken & Rese]

I know this is an old thread, but I am new to the group.

I just purchased a used Outback and still own an 04 Odyssey. The Honda is
okay in the snow and ice, but my driveway is steep and I had to blow it
before we made it up. I also have an old 4x4 PU and it went up fine. I am
betting that the Subaru will far exceed the winter capabilities of the
Honda, but there is no question that the Honda has a tremendous amount of
room compared to the Subaru.

We constantly praise the Honda for all the versatility that it offers us.
We went for a ride today in the Subaru and definitely noticed how much less
room there is in the Subaru. Chances are if we are in NEED of travel on
VERY bad roads, it will be the Subaru, but all other cases will be the
Honda.

As said by someone else, you need to really weigh your needs and make a
decision and understand that there will be sacrifice with either. If I had
to choose one for my needs, I would choose the Honda. If it is really that
bad, I just won't go or I will plan ahead and leave early. One more note.
The Honda does just as well as any other FWD vehicle I have driven. We did
drive in much snow and didn't really have an issue.

Hope this helps,

Ken.

 

[Carl 1 Lucky Texan]

Have you tried backing up the drive in the Honda?(puts more weight on
the driving wheels - not much help on ice but maybe enough with snow?)
Also, you may be a good candidate for the new Subaru Tribeca van!

Carl

 

[Mark IV]

I know this is an old thread, but I am new to the group.

I just purchased a used Outback and still own an 04 Odyssey. The
Honda is okay in the snow and ice, but my driveway is steep and I had
to blow it before we made it up. I also have an old 4x4 PU and it
went up fine. I am betting that the Subaru will far exceed the
winter capabilities of the Honda, but there is no question that the
Honda has a tremendous amount of room compared to the Subaru.

You could also buy a Winnebago, you'll find that there is no question that
the Winnebago has a tremendous amount of room compared to the Honda.

We constantly praise the Honda for all the versatility that it offers
us. We went for a ride today in the Subaru and definitely noticed how
much less room there is in the Subaru.

Doh!

I went for a ride on a bus once (or twice) too and I found there was much
less room in a car...

Personally, I'd rather throw my Impreza around the road bends than drive a
bus but to each their own I guess.

 

[etienne]

I do not own a Ody, but have driven many FWD vehicles without snows on
the front. Driving backward up the hill does not help as you have no
control over the direction, you can turn the steering wheel going
backwards however the the tail end will not respond to the direction as
the driving wheels are already overloaded with trying to move the car
backwards that it does not have the ability to really dicate which
direction the tail end will go, ie too much is being done already by
those front wheels.

FWD are inherently poor vehicles going up any hill. Why? As soon as you
touch the gas to move forward the weight transfer unloads the front
wheels. The main benefit of FWD over RWD is more control as the weight
is sitting on top of your steering wheels.

 

[Tom Reingold]

Doh!

I went for a ride on a bus once (or twice) too and I found there was much
less room in a car...

Personally, I'd rather throw my Impreza around the road bends than drive a
bus but to each their own I guess.

I think next time my family takes a road trip, we will rent a minivan. I
rented one when I was car shopping in March, and my kids loved it.

Renting is yet another way of "having it all". The Subaru is versatile,
but it's not that comfortable for long trips. But I see no sense in
buying a function I don't use often.

Tom

 

[F. Plant]

snip

Renting is yet another way of "having it all". The Subaru is versatile,
but it's not that comfortable for long trips. But I see no sense in
buying a function I don't use often.

Just saw your post, and this is actually what I may do for the time being.
The legacy suits a lot of my needs, and makes due for a bit more. For the
remainder I might just suffer or rent as required. It's tough to justify
changing vehicles when there isn't one that makes me really want to dump the
subie yet.

F.Plant